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So you have brought your bundle of joy home and everything is fantastic. Friends and family have visited, your partner has gone back to work and having your new baby becomes normality then just as you start to get in to a routine Colic strikes. Colic is a really challenging condition to deal with. Whilst harmless enough for your baby, it’s certainly not harmless on your ears or your sanity! If your little one is crying uncontrollably and nothing you do seems to be soothing them, colic is likely to be the culprit.

I have had a colic baby too and it really is terrible, it can take the joy out of parenthood and you often wonder how on earth you will ever make it through another day and the only thing that got me through this difficult period is trying lots of different treatments praying that “this next treatment will be the one that works.” However, after purchasing many treatments, I realized that I should look for an alternative. I ended up trying lots of home remediesand found that they worked best for George, my purse and my marriage.

What is Colic?

A lot of people ask “What is Colic?” The only way I can explain it is that Colic is a term that is used when your baby cries suddenly and excessively and cannot be soothed. Experts have carried out investigations on Colic and unfortunately the cause of Colic in babies still remains a mystery, however they do know that it is not a result of a traumatic childbirth, nor is it lack of parenting skills (believe me, I questioned mine). Colic is not an illness or a diagnosis but it is a combination of different behaviours.

Colic symptoms

So how can you tell if your little bundle of joy is suffering from colic? Typical colic symptoms in babies include:

Prolonged crying – Uncontrollable crying that lasts at least three hours, at least three days a week isn’t normal. All babies cry, but if it is prolonged and it goes on for three or more days a week, it’s likely to be colic. The crying tends to occur at the same time each day and when they cry it sounds like they are in pain.

There is no apparent reason why they are crying – Babies cry because they need or want something. It could be feeding, they’re craving attention, they’re tired and need a nap or they need to be changed. If all of these things can be ruled out, then colic is likely to be the problem.

They pull their legs up to their tummy while crying – If they arch their back and pull their legs up to their tummy while crying and unfortunately this colicky pain is another symptom of colic.

Overall, it is important to remember about colic is it isn’t an illness. So, the symptoms will largely be linked to their behaviour, rather than physical symptoms. If your baby has any symptoms of illness such as a fever and nausea, it could be an indicator of a different problem. Colic in babies should always be properly diagnosed by a doctor, so regardless of whether they have any symptoms of illness, you should still get them checked over to double check it is actually colic you’re dealing with.

What causes colic?

Experts are currently unsure what causes colic in breastfed babies. There are a few theories on why some babies develop Colic.

The theories are as follows;

Immature digestive system

Overstimulated senses

Individual temperament

Food Allergies or Sensitivity

Tobacco Exposure

Wind

Immature Digestive System

As your baby’s digestive system is quite new, it can struggle to break down and pass food quickly. This results in an excess gas build-up which can be quite painful, causing your baby a lot of distress.

Overstimulated Senses

Another possible explanation for colic is the fact that once they reach one month of age, their senses start to become overstimulated. Initially they are able to successfully tune out the various sounds around them while they feed and sleep. The sheer amount of new sounds they experience can be overwhelming and crying is a way of relieving the stress this causes.

Individual Temperament

However, the majority of experts agree that when it comes to what causes colic in breastfed babies, it’s more than likely just individual temperament. That is, some babies are more sensitive than others. If you have more than one child, you’ll already know just how different they can be. Your experience with your first baby is more than likely going to be completely different to your experience with your second.

Food Allergies or Sensitivity

Some experts believe Colic is the result of an allergy to milk protein or in rare cases it could be the mothers diet that causes colic in breastfed babies.

Tobacco Exposure

Many studies show that mums that smoke during or after pregnancy are more likely to have babies with Colic, second hand smoke can also play a part in colic in babies.

Wind

A lot of parents feel that colic is down to a wind build up from each feed over the course of the day then by the evening the baby has too much wind and it makes them uncomfortable.

Is Colic Harmful to Baby?

Colic will not harm your baby, however it is important to ensure that you and your partner support each other during this very testing and frustrating period. It is important to stay as calm as possible and remind yourself and each other that Colic is just a phase and it will pass.

If you feel like Colic is making you feel depressed or unable to cope, it is important to speak out. Confide in friends and family for extra support and speak to your health visitor or GP as soon as you can.

How Long does Colic Last for?

A lot of people ask me “How long does colic last for?” Colic usually starts around 6 weeks, however in my case it was a little earlier and it can last up to around 4 months.

Unfortunately, when you become a parent there is no handbook included. Being a good parent is something you learn as you go along. A question that goes through a lot of parent’s mind is “Will I be a good parent?” to which I always respond “if you are asking that question then I would say your already part of the way there” because the parent is already showing that they care. We all want our children to have the correct balance of morals, values and discipline but unfortunately our children will test us along the way and it is important not to give in to there every need and tantrum.

You must remember that you will meet a lot of opinionated mothers and fathers along the way and every parent’s opinions on how to raise a child will be different but this does not mean that you are doing it wrong. You will see that your own mother and mother in law will have their ways of parenting too and that’s great if they offer advise but remember it doesn’t mean that you have to do as they say.

If you feel that your child is misbehaving it could be worth looking to see if any of the below applies to you and your household.

The top 10 sign of bad parenting are likely to be as follows;

1 – Rules – What rules?

A household where kids have no rules and do as they please is a recipe for disaster. Children need to learn what is right and what is wrong and it important to implement this in to there every day lives. If a child has not received any discipline how does the child know that they are doing something wrong. It is important for a child to have a strict regime in the house and stick to it whenever possible.

2 – No Q.T

Yes, children love you buying them treats but children love talking and communicating with you too. I remember my dad used to pick me up from school every Friday and we would go walking along the beach together and talking about our week and I loved it. When I look back at when I was younger these were my memories and not the things my dad bought me. If you do not spend time with your child, your child is likely to act up in other ways to get attention.

3 -Smacking

If you shout and scream at your kids they will initially be afraid but if they get used to it, it may not bother them anymore and you will feel the need to seek a different option as punishment. Although smacking was something that used to exist (certainly when I was a child). It is no longer advisable and may backfire. If you smack your child it will teach them violence from a young age and they may end developing physiological problems and show aggression to other children.

4 – Treating others badly

Your child watches you and how you interact with other people. It is important to speak nicely to your partner and other elders in front of your child. If you speak badly to others, then your child will believe that this is acceptable and children need to respect their elders.

5 – Too Protective

Let your child make mistakes and you do not always cover for them because if you do eventually they will take you for granted and not be bothered about their mistakes.

6 – No Trust You must trust your child to a certain extent. Other children will complain about your child and that is to be expected but if you believe all of the complaints more than your child then you are showing that you believe your child is a liar. You should always ask for their version of events, if you don’t eventually your child could end up not being honest with you.

7 – Interfering parent

You can not to resolve all of your child’s tiffs and problems, if you do you are not allowing your child to develop socially. This means they will grow to be dependent on you. You must allow your child to hold their own so they are capable of doing so.

8 – Giving your child everything

Do not to spoil your child too much. If you bought your child everything they asked for the one time you say “no” they will kick up a huge fuss. It is important that learn value of money as even as they grow up they will think that they should be bought everything and rely on you financially.

9 – Insults

Name calling your child in public can hurt your child and lower their self-esteem. It is then that your child could resent other children and develop traits of jealousy.

10 – Compare your Child

Every child is different and your child will learn at a different speed to mine. It does not make my child thick if your child picks something up quicker than he does. Although we like reassurance that our children are on track. It is important not to compare your child’s achievements to another child’s. If you constantly put down your child and make them feel stupid, they will lose trust in you or worse still they will believe your insults and give up.

When my son George developed colic at around 4 weeks old, I frantically searched for colic treatments that I could buy over the counter right away. Lack of sleep is torturous and I would have paid anything just for some peace at night but unfortunately other than leaving a huge hole in my pocket there was no improvement with the over the counter colic remedies. I’m not saying it will be the same for everyone but why not start with the cheapest option and try the free home colic remedies first.

I began reading in to home remedies for colic and thought it was worth giving them a try, not only did I want to banish colic but I also wanted to know how to prevent colic from rearing its ugly head again.

I tried the following home remedies for colic and within a few days my son was much better, it is difficult to pin point the exact reason that the colic stopped but I felt the gripe water played a huge part.

Burp baby more frequently – I burped George much more often than usual. I was burping him every 30mls. It was a pain on the night feeds but I found I could settle George a lot easier and quicker afterwards. There are many burping techniques for example; holding baby over your shoulder, sitting baby in an upright position or place them over your lap and gently tap or rub their back to bring up the wind.

Keep baby upright afterfeeds – Each time your baby has a feed keep them upright for at least 20 minutes where possible. I also tried to ensure that Georges head was nicely raised during every feed so that the milk went straight down.

Massaging the tummy – My friend runs a baby massage class so when she came round for a brew I took the opportunity to use her skills for free. Baby massage is meant to help with colic however due to lack of sleep I couldn’t think of anything worse than attending a class with other humans and paying for the privilege, so I decided to massage George myself. I massaged baby oil into Georges belly with two fingers. I then gently massage the tummy to help move along any poo or trapped wind. I did this each afternoon and George seemed to enjoy it. It is important to do this very gently as a baby’s body is so delicate and fragile.

Using the Dummy – I wasn’t sure if I was going to give George a dummy at first however once colic began I went and bought 4 at once. At Georges worst colic cries he would spit the dummy out but it did settle him in the end when he began getting too tired to cry anymore.

Play white noise – We played white noise during the colic times and sadly he was crying that loud he wouldn’t have heard it but he did seem to settle down to it in the evening. It could be worth a try. White noise helps soothe your baby, the sounds remind them of being in the womb. You may also notice that a hoover or hair dryer may also have the same effect.

Go for a drive or walk in the pram – The car and pram were great for settling George but the hard part was transporting him from the car seat or pram back to his moses basket, he often woke during the process which was not pretty.

Try a warm bath – Your baby spent months in your amniotic fluid, your baby may find some comfort in the bath. This often settled George for a while (at least whilst he was in there)

Gripe Water – Try giving your baby gripe water before each feed, I feel this really worked for George, see my article on Gripe water.

Propping up moses basket – We put books under Georges moses basket stand to ensure he was never lay down completely flat.

After a few days of Gripe water (which was our last resort) and trying all of the above the colic seemed to disappear completely. It is difficult to pin point what exactly it was that stopped the colic but the main thing to remember is…. there is a light at the end of the tunnel and eventually it will stop.

Please also remember that every baby is different and what works for me may not work for you.

Is your baby fighting sleep? It is bedtime but for some reason you little one is crying and not wanting to go to sleep. This can be extremely stressful for a parent to deal with.

There are lots of reasons why your baby could be fighting sleep.

Your baby could be overtired – There is usually a timeframe where your baby could doze off and if you miss this timeframe then your baby could simply be too tired to fall asleep easily. It is important to allow a baby to fall asleep when they need to. If you try to keep them up for longer to try and get a full night sleep it can work against you and they can end up being too tired to sleep.

Your baby might not be tired enough for a sleep –Babies tend to sleep when they need it and it is unlikely that a baby has had too much sleep. As babies grow in to toddlers they require less sleep time and more awake time. It could be that your toddler can get through the odd day without a nap or that they could be too excited by their surroundings to have a nap.

Your baby could be going through separation anxiety – Separation anxiety usually starts at around 9 or 10 months and can continue until your baby is 2 years old. Your baby does not want to be away from you and they link going to bed as being in their own room on their own and know if they fall asleep they won’t be with you.

Tips to stop your baby fighting sleep

Moving Bedtime

Your baby could be fighting sleep for any of the reasons above therefore you need to ensure that you time bedtime right. You may need to move bedtime later or earlier.

Discover a nap routine

As your baby gets older you may need to introduce an established nap time to ensure that your little one does not get overtired from all the play or have too much sleep in the day.

Adjust your babies feeding and nap times

Sometimes it is just worth fiddling around with your babies feeding and sleeping time to get an idea of what works best.

Ensure there is a different atmosphere in the daytime compared to the night time

It is important that when it is daytime everything is noisy and the TV is on, you hoover and talk as much as possible even if your baby is napping then at night time things should begin to calm down for your baby, perhaps turn the volume down a little on the TV and talk a little quieter this will keep you baby calm and get him or her to settle down a little easier.

Give your little one enough space

Give enough space to your baby so that they don’t become to needy and also to allow them to self sooth and be comfortable on their own.

Your babies cries are usually quickly rectified by giving them a bottle or changing their bum however when your baby is crying in their sleep it can be upsetting and a little bizarre. What is your baby dreaming about to make them cry? Is it possible for your baby to have nightmares and dreams just like us?

All babies have dreams but babies can only dream about what they know about. Babies don’t know about murderers and nasty people yet so they won’t be having nightmares about that. Your babies’ dreams and nightmares are much more likely to be about their experiences throughout the day. Many scientists say that very young babies process any experiences they have learnt during the day when they go to sleep and a nightmare can be as simple as a memory of your leaving them for a point in the day.

It can be difficult if your baby is crying in their sleep at night. It is hard enough the baby waking for feeds but if your baby is crying for no reason it can be frustrating.

Night Crier

There is a term called “Night Crier” this term is used if your baby is over 4 months old and cries at least once a night. If your baby wakes most nights, it is worth going to the doctor or mentioning it to your midwife so that they can carry out the appropriate tests.

It can be difficult for new born babies to understand sleep cycles and differentiate from day time and night time. It is important for your baby to have an established bedtime routine and ensure that is carried out each evening.

There is a chance that your baby has colic, please see my page colic symptoms for more information.

Tips to help your little one

Bed time routine helps babies feel more relaxed.

Get baby familiar with their bedroom, a lot of new parents make the mistake of decorating the nursery and then never going in the room with the baby until they are ready for their own room. It is important that your baby is comfortable and happy in their own bedroom. Make sure you change your babies bum in their bedroom from day one so that they get used to their surroundings.

Ensure nappies are clean before bedtime.

Give your baby a bottle just before bed.

Try and keep the noise down at bedtime.

It is important to not appear stressed around your baby, babies can sense when their mother is upset and stressed and this is a contributing factor to sleepless nights.